With technological advances have come many changes in the ways that people communicate with one another. For example, affordable home computing systems and the Internet have made instant messaging a popular tool for engaging in one-on-one, real-time electronic communications. Cellular telephones have also emerged as a prevalent fixture in our society, keeping even the most mobile users in touch with others.
These technological advances have led to changes in the way individuals communicate with each other in one-on-one conversations. However, many people, especially teenagers and young adults, frequently participate in group social situations involving more than just one other person. Although cellular telephones can enable conference calls with three or more individuals and instant messaging applications allow additional individuals to be invited to join a particular conversation, there are no existing applications that are designed to enable group social interactions in ways that are consistent with face-to-face group social interactions. Face-to-face group social interactions may include several simultaneous activities such as talking, listening to music, and looking at pictures. For example, if several individuals meet together at a person's house, they may simultaneously listen to a music CD, talk, and look at pictures from a trip that one of the individuals recently took. All of the individuals are able hear the music, view the pictures, and comment on the pictures to one another at the same time.
Most existing communication mechanisms allow for multiple individuals to communicate, for example through instant messaging, but require that the communication application be specifically configured for the group each time. That is, for instant messaging, each individual to be included in a conversation has to be specifically invited to join. Furthermore, existing communication mechanisms are designed to be accessed from either a desktop computer system or from a cellular telephone. There are no existing systems that enable communication between multiple members of a group where some of the group members are using a mobile device (e.g., a cellular telephone) and other group members are using a non-mobile device (e.g., a desktop computer system).
Accordingly, a need exists for a mechanism that facilitates real-time synchronous group interaction that includes mobile group members.